"Temporary" Garages

Well, it's been a while.

8122pbrainard wrote: Matt, The shaft should be flush with the face. the shaft is probably 1/2" short. your friend may be getting it on as well as interfering.

No, defenetely not.

The puller I have has 3 'splines' attached to a central piece that hook around the prop and a bolt going through the center of the piece that drives into the end of the shaft. Guess I should look into buying a proper prop puller if you will.

Thanks for the info Pete. I'll be working on it.

Ok Gents,

I was able to do most of what you mentioned this morning before work. Got the rudder turned, seperated the shaft at the tranny coupling. It appears (from memory this morning) that the end of the shaft was about flush with the coupling that's attached to it.

Is that the correct position or has the shaft moved?

There's room now to get the puller on but....

The problem is the puller itself. The bolt on the prop puller is about 6 inches long. Too long, even with the rudder turned. I need to try and get a different bolt for the puller. The friend whom I barrowed it from has much bigger, older, wooden Chris Crafts. Will be in touch soon, hopefully :)

And thanks for the help with searches, suggestions and the 'alignment' thread. Very Cool.

Matt, Here's a link to Eric's thread on alignment. He by the way is our on site transmission specialist. He does it for a living and takes care of everone here who spells his name with a C rather than a K!!! Don't ever make the mistake of using a K!!! I think I'm going to live with it till I die!

Eric's thread and pictorial

do a search for alignment on this site Eric explains in detail the procedure. You are basically adjusting the motor and tranny mounts so that the two faces of the couplings (prop shaft and transmission output shaft) are square to each other something you need to check every year at the beginning of the season or again if you unfortunately hit something with the prop.

ok to start are you sure you winterized it correctly?

to disconnect the prop shaft is pretty easy. Lift the motor box and at the back in the center of the boat you will see where the shaft connects to the transmission there are two couplings connected by four bolts. Remove the the four nuts and bolts and then you can pull on the prop to separate the two coupling's one is attached to the shaft and the other is part of the tranny. Maybe Tim can post a picture for you.

To get to the steering cable there is a panel behind the back seat cushion just remove the back cushion and then remove the vertical panel and then you will see the tiller arm and cable under the gas tank close to the transom and remove the one bolt attaching the two you should be able to figure it out pretty easily once you see it. Start there and we'll move on later.

damn it Doc

Your suggestions are much appreciated!

I will make an effort to do the things you guys suggested. Right now it's freezing rain and dark out.

I should mention this is my first boat and I'm in love with it. I've enjoyed the few hours I spent on the water immensley and have enjoyed winterizing and tinkering this past few weeks, but I also obviously don't know alot about them. I will continue to search the forums here for info and will write back to this thread as soon as I touch the boat again (maybe this weekend) .... but...

Could someone please explain the best way to search for info and topics on this site? I looked through 49 pages of threads last night and it was hard to find the info I was looking for. I don't have any literature or manuals at this point and I'm not the most savy mechanic or computer person...so your guys info and time is very, very, very appreciated. Thanks a bunch.

The boat is an '82 Tique w/ a 302. I was using an actual prop puller but their appears to be around only an 1/8th inch gap from strut to prop. I think I read somewhere on how to pull the shaft last night but will have to try and search again. Don't know how to do an alignment and same with even getting to the steering cable near the prop! Back cover should come off pretty easy right? The point is, thanks for your patience and time. Look forward to learning and loving some more. These boats kick ass!!

the prop should be about 1/2" from the strut for best performance, from the factory a lot of the earlier models where about 1" away from the strut. I know when I replaced my prop shaft that I did have it shortened to 49 1/2" instead of the typical 50" stock.

I doubt that the cable is frozen shouldn't be any water in to freeze. It's going to be stiff so give the rudder a steady strong pull and it should go, well unless you have something in the front seat locking up the steering wheel that is.

Also are you using a prop puller or is it some other type of puller that you are using?

Matt, Follow Tims suggestion. I'd like to add that since the prop is so close to the strut, that you will need to diconnect the coupling at the trans so the shaft and prop can be pulled towards the stern. You should do a alignment on it anyway so unbolting the coupling isn't a loss. You should have between a 1/2" and 1" space between the strut and the prop. Maybe someone put a shorter shaft in.

Oh yeah,

I also tried heating the prop with a torch and tapping the prop with a mini sledge and punch. Noticed little indentations from the punch on the prop and decided to stop that too.

Matt, What's the problem with the prop? Do you have or have access to a puller?

Matt,
I'll agree w/ Pete, Looks Good!
In the NorthEast it's that heavy wet snow that usually gets the best of them. The key is to have the ridge high enough to keep the snow from being able to build-up on the wide transom area.
At the N.E.CCF reunion two years ago there was a good tip for keeping it mildew free -
Fill a couple of buckets with charcoal that you use for the grill. Put one up front and one in back. Worked great for me.

pete I don't know way to much over kill to me, and have you ever heard of this stuff call Damp-rid a must for any winter storage.

way too much over kill. All you need to do is use your regular road cover and use one support pole behind the motor box, then throw a large tarp over that covering the platform and the rest of the boat and securely tie the tarp around the boat and running the ropes under the boat so everything is snug and not flapping in the breeze. Never once did I have a problem with too much snow on it.

beer is the best part